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Monday, February 2, 2009

Everything is Changing

Doesn't it feel like everything is changing? When the clock passed midnight and into the new year on January 1, you could just feel the difference. The economy is tanking. Businesses that were once anchors at the local shopping center have shut down and now their buildings sit empty collecting dust instead of customers. An African American has been elected by a landslide into the oval office. And the Arizona Cardinals are playing in the super bowl. Yes things have radically changed.

At this year's Organic Church Movements Conference, we are picking up on that theme and looking at ways that the kingdom of God can change everything as well. I actually have great hope during this time. I believe we may be on the verge of seeing breakthroughs that could change everything about the church, and therefore about the world.

We will have Reggie McNeal speaking. His book Missional Renaissance just came out. He will address how we must change the scorecard of what is success for churches today. We cannot afford to be content with meaningless measurements of success. Counting nickels and noses is no longer enough.

We will have Dave Gibbons speaking and his new book The Monkey and the Fish just came out. Dave will look at what it means to be relevant in todays rapidly changing world. Dave is involved with a handful of new business enterprises to bring God's kingdom into some very unusual places.

Ali Eastburn will be telling us about how God is using her and her friends to change the word With This Ring. Ali is a great example of how an ordinary Christian homemaker can hear from the Holy Spirit, follow with courage and sacrifice and find herself doing something of great significance in the world.

I will also be sharing from my newest book which is now out...Organic Leadership.

I believe that if we simply remove a few lies embedded in the minds of Christians, things will change. If we can remove the barriers of clergy vs laity, secular vs sacred or local church vs universal church/parachurch the implications could literally be global and extend into every domain of society. This change is not about mega church versus micro church. It is not about attractional versus missional. It is about every follower of Christ being free to follow into the vocational call of God on their life--no matter what that may be. And then doing so with the vigor and inspiration of the Holy Spirit resulting in greater innovation, creativity and compassionate righteousness in all spheres of our society. It is about every part of Christ's body being connected to His head and hearing His voice. Come join the conversation.

1 comment:

Hey Neil, great to see your blog! I wish I could be there for the conference, but alas...it is not to be. :-( I guess I will be making a trip to the bookstore to buy Organic Leadership and Reggie's new book instead.

Just a Thought: I find it interesting that so many people see a 52% to 46% victory for President Obama as a landslide.